Port of Hamburg strengthens India links following EU-India trade deal

The Port of Hamburg is stepping up cooperation with India following the recent EU-India Free Trade Agreement, with potential implications for fresh produce trade between the two markets.

According to Port of Hamburg Marketing, a high-level maritime and logistics delegation visited Chennai, Mumbai and New Delhi to deepen commercial ties and position Hamburg as a key European gateway for Indian trade.

Direct container traffic between Hamburg and India reached 290,000 TEU in 2025 — a 50% increase compared with the previous year and the highest level on record. Between 2020 and 2024, volumes had already risen by 21%, placing India sixth among Hamburg’s most important container trade partners.

For fruit and vegetable exporters, stronger connections on the India-Hamburg corridor could support growing flows of products such as Indian grapes, pomegranates and mangoes into Europe, as well as European apples and pears shipped to the Indian market.

Hamburg currently maintains 12 regular services with India — including six container services — linking to ports such as Nhava Sheva, Mundra, Mumbai, Chennai, Ennore and Hazira.

Discussions during the visit also covered port modernisation and sustainability, including shore power systems aimed at reducing vessel emissions while docked — a factor increasingly relevant for fresh produce supply chains under pressure to lower carbon footprints.

source and photo: hafen-hamburg.de